At India's World Cup Semi-finals, R. Ashwin Sums Up 'Pitch Swapping' Allegations
Ace spinner of Indian Cricket Team Ravichandran Ashwin laughed off the media reports that surfaced on the day of India's Cricket World Cup semifinal against New Zealand in Mumbai, claiming that the pitch for the contest was changed at the behest of the hosts. He said, "Journalists from other countries comment that the pictures have been changed and so on, but it is clearly laughable. India is a unique country; different parts of the country have different soils.”
He further added that "Ahmedabad in itself has more than 3-4 varieties of soil in the square, so what George Bailey said regarding the pitch made me spellbound, but Pat Cummins' execution needs to be applauded.”
Ashwin said he had not watched a fast bowler bowl to a conventional field for an off-spinner, which Pat Cummins executed perfectly against India in the final.
He also said that “in the last 4-5 games leading up to the final, almost 50 percent of the balls were cutters. In the final, he had a four-five (four on off, five on leg) field like an off-spinner.”